David Ortiz Goes On Rant

"I'm the kind of [expletive] who worries about winning games," Ortiz said. "I'm a winner. I hate losing. But what I do, I don't do for everybody to know. I do it for us to get better and the trash talking out there to stop."

"Somebody wrote, 'Why didn't he do it earlier?' Earlier? When am I going to do it, in spring training," Ortiz asked. "What did I do wrong? Seriously, what did I do wrong? … You hit 54 home runs, then hit 35, it's not good enough. How many people hit 35? Never good enough, bro. That's why I don't care."

"I don't get no respect," Ortiz said. "Not from the media. Not from the front office. What I do is never the right thing. It's always hiding, for somebody to find out (WEEI)."

At first when I read this I was pissed. David Ortiz is making $14.5 million dollars this season, that is way more than any other DH in the league and plenty of "respect" for him. Then I sat back and thought about it and I think I agree with Ortiz. Since the end of last year the media and the front office have been coming out with all these stories about what's going on in the clubhouse. Beer and chicken, arguments between managers and players, who is in the dugout when, and so on. I think that's what Ortiz is talking about here.

It come out last week that Ortiz called a player only meeting on May 11th, and the hitters basically got heated at the pitchers and told them they needed to step up. I don't there any of us would disagree with that. Since then it seems like it has worked. Beckett has been great, Lester has been great, and the Sox have been riding a very hot stretch here. So even after Ortiz has done what ever fan has been begging someone on this team to do since last September, he gets ripped in the media again, asking why he didn't do it earlier?

I love Ortiz's response. "When was I going to do it? Spring training?". He's right, that's a stupid comment. The team meeting was needed after the golf stuff with Beckett. A leader stepped up and it happened to be Ortiz. Good. Then it has to been leaked to the media (Bobby V, Front office?), and even after what should be such a uplifting story he gets ripped.

Ortiz is pissed because of all the negative stuff around the team, he is sick of the leaks, and then the last part if probably about the lack of a long term deal. I don't like to admit it, but Ortiz is right. Whoever is leaking stories every other day needs to be dealt with, because it isn't going to help anything.